Malaria Prevention Behavior among Community Figures in Banyumas Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

Banyumas Regency is a receptive area with imported cases of malaria mainly due to the rate of migration. To prevent the transmission of imported malaria, migration surveillance is crucial and community figures play a vital role in raising public awareness concerning this necessity. This study aimed to describe malaria prevention behavior among community figures and identify the influential factors in Banyumas. An analytical cross-sectional study was employed among the community figures using a questionnaire. The samples included 115 community figures in the malaria-receptive areas of Banyumas using a total sampling technique. Variables studied included age, knowledge, attitude, education, income, access to healthcare services, information exposure, and behavior. The analysis involved univariate, bivariate with chi-square test, and multivariate with logistic regression. The results showed that the malaria prevention behavior among community figures was categorized as good at 54.8%. Knowledge, attitude, education, access to healthcare services, and exposure to information were related to prevention behavior. The most influential factor was poor knowledge (p=0.000; POR=4.298; CI=1.701-10.860), posing a 4.298 times greater risk of having inadequate prevention behavior. Community leaders should actively seek information related to malaria and disseminate this information to their community.